The Madison Catholic Diocese had initially planned to vacate the Bishop O’Connor Catholic Pastoral Center at 702 S. High Point Road in Madison and transform it into 90 apartments. Plans also called for the building’s chapel to be converted into a lounge.
Those plans have changed. Now, the diocese staff and all affiliated Catholic organizations there (Catholic Charities, the Catholic Herald newspaper, and Relevant Radio) will remain, taking about 36% of the building’s space. Much of the remaining 232,000-square-foot building will be transformed into 54 apartments designed for empty nesters and residents over 50 years old. The Catholic-focused atmosphere will remain, as will the chapel, which will continue offering daily mass and hosting other diocesan functions.
The Bishop O’Connor Center, once known as Holy Name Seminary, is the historic headquarters of the Catholic diocese in Madison. The seminary closed in 1995. The diocese will still own the building but will pay rent to a new limited-liability company that has yet to be formed. The cash flow generated from the apartments will be used to reimburse the diocese for the rent it pays.
The revised plans are expected to cost about $16 million and will include mixed-use accommodations as well. Gorman & Co. will secure financing, design the housing, oversee construction, and manage the property under a long-term lease agreement with the diocese, which now expects the building to remain tax-exempt. Construction could start later this year, with the first tenants taking residence in late 2015.
